MATTHEW 27:11–14 – Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You have said so.” But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he gave no answer. Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed.”
THEME OF THE DAY: SILENCE IS OFTEN BEST. This is a riveting account of the Lord Jesus before Pontius Pilate. It not only moves our hearts but teaches us an extremely valuable lesson about the use of our tongue or our speech.
One of the clearest signs of our spiritual maturity as a Christian is the quality of our speech, even the quantity of our speech and especially in tense and emotionally charged conversations. Many Christian testimonies have been tarnished by an uncontrolled tongue in the “heat of a moment”. Conversely, many Christian testimonies have been enhanced because of a controlled tongue. They may well receive the response of the governor to Jesus’s controlled tongue – so that the governor was greatly amazed. A believer who learns to be Holy Spirit controlled in the use or lack of the use of their tongue will leave a significant and positive witness for Christ among those observing and hearing them in conversations.
As for the lesson in today’s scripture, it isn’t about using the tongue, but the restraint in doing so. Jesus could have said a lot and would be right to do so. The Son of God justifiably could have defended His character and His actions, but pay very close attention to His answer when questioned by Pilate – “Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed (Matthew 27:13-14). Jesus didn’t answer. He didn’t defend Himself.
Friends, sometimes, and maybe a lot of times, the best thing we give in conversations is our ears to listen and not a tongue to voice an opinion or defend ourselves. We simply don’t always have to say something, and if we don’t remember this truth, we will look back and wish we used our ears more than our tongues. A good complimentary scripture for this lesson modeled by Jesus comes from the wisdom of King Solomon – Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding (Proverbs 17:27).
So, in the daily challenge of living the Christian life, and doing so among sinners, even saved sinners, the potential for unhealthy and testimony-damaging conversations exists. We are always one sentence away from saying something we will regret. Be on guard. Remember Jesus’ example in His extremely emotionally charged dialogue with Pontius Pilate. It is true, silence is often best!
PRAYER: “Father, teach me when to speak and when not to speak that all my conversations may honor You.”
QUOTE: “Sometimes the best thing we give to people in any conversations is our silence, not opinion.”
Because of Him,
Pastor Jim